by Ruby Loren
I was saved from taking any decisive - and probably rash - action by Detective Admiral arriving in the kitchen and asking to take Jane’s statement. Not long after that, he let her go, not charging her with anything. Then, it was my turn.
“How did you know?” Sean asked, looking baffled and rather annoyed now that we were alone together.
“I was telling the truth about the clues I saw along the way joining the dots, if you knew where to start. The part you missed is that there’s a new devil in town making deals with the residents of Wormwood. We’re witnessing the aftermath of one of those deals,” I explained.
“A new devil? Wait… there are devils?”
“I’m as surprised as anyone that Jesse had nothing to do with this,” I said once I’d explained all to Sean. He looked like he’d been punched in the gut.
“I knew there was something evil about that private detective pretender,” he muttered, before shaking his head. “Why would anyone think it was a good idea to make a deal with something calling itself a devil? It’s in all the films…”
“I know,” I said emphatically, having felt the same way when I’d spoken to Jesse about reading the small print.
He looked down at his notepad and pen and then dropped it down to hang by his side. For a moment, he looked out at the garden thoughtfully, before he asked the question I’d been waiting for.
“What was going on when we arrived here today?”
“I was trying to stop a hellhound from ripping Jane apart for not fulfilling her part of a deal,” I explained.
“Well, there you go! Just like the films…” Sean muttered, still staring out of the window into the distance. I didn’t think his eyes were focused on anything right now. He turned his head back to face me. “A hellhound? Really? How come…”
“They’re invisible,” I finished for him, knowing what he’d been about to ask. “Jane walked into it on her way out of the living room. That growl was the hound.”
Sean’s eyes widened. “It was in the room with us?” He frowned. “Why wasn’t it attacking anyone?”
“That is an excellent question. I was able to stop it from going after Jane, and now… I think he’s mine.” For some reason, I felt a warm glow of satisfaction inside when I said that. It was like I’d been meant to have a hellhound all along. Hadn’t I felt a strange unexpected affinity for Hecate once I’d got to know her? Perhaps this was why.
“You’ve got a pet hellhound. Honestly, this town…” Sean shook his head, but I couldn’t help noticing he looked slightly impressed. That look stayed put in his grey eyes when he suddenly seemed to focus on me. “You really are a big deal in the magical world, aren’t you?” He meant it genuinely and as a compliment.
I smiled back in return. “I’m just me,” I said with a little shrug.
The detective nodded. “I should let you get home. It’s late in the month and I’m guessing you’ll want to go to press with the mystery you just solved. I’m sure it will be another hit issue of Tales from Wormwood.”
I grinned at him. “You remembered the name! You do care.”
His lips twitched. “Call me to double-check what you’re putting in. I shouldn’t have to remind you that this is an ongoing investigation until we get a conviction. But… something tells me I do have to remind you. Especially given that I’m probably going to find myself answering awkward questions like ‘Why did the shed have the padlock broken on it?’ and ‘Why we were there in the first place?’” He sighed. “I’m sure we’ll manage to get through it. Well… unless Daryl does manage to employ that crack lawyer.” His gaze sharpened as he finally realised the truth. “It’s her… isn’t it? She’s the new devil in town? I swear, it’s always lawyers…”
I nodded. “She’s calling herself Chloe Rex. Don’t worry. Not even the devil himself could get Daryl out of custody with the evidence you have against him. Who else could have put her in that wall… and then added plaster and wallpaper?”
Sean nodded, looking more sure of himself. “It’s looking pretty watertight against him, which is more than I can say for the wall.”
I blinked. He’d made a joke!
He gave me a look that said I could stop looking so surprised. “Just do me a favour…”
“…yes?” I said, fully expecting him to tell me to quit breaking the law and interfering with his police investigation the way he usually liked to.
“If the devil himself ever does come to Wormwood, tell me first…”
“I promise,” I said, surprised he wasn’t telling me off.
“…before you break-in to his house,” Sean finished.
“I knew you couldn’t resist.” I grinned at him.
But the most miraculous thing to happen that day was when he smiled back at me.
19
One for all, and all for One
Even though the town was in an uproar over the murders of Helen and Sarah, I was still forced to call a coven meeting at the apothecary. I didn’t think I’d ever know for sure just how much influence the deal Jane had made with the new devil in town would have had over Daryl’s actions, but one thing was obvious - it could never be allowed to happen again.
Everyone looked nervous when they were seated around my kitchen table. In all honesty, I wasn’t feeling too sure about this myself. I’d already had an eventful day. My afternoon was spent wandering around Wormwood Forest, wondering if it had all been a horrible dream. Only my new companion had been the steady reminder that it had all happened.
“It has come to my attention that some of you have been making deals with devils,” I said, looking around the room and focusing on Adelaide, Emma, and Jane in particular. Adelaide didn’t even flinch, Emma looked slightly guilty, but Jane appeared close to a breakdown. “I’ve never made a decision without a vote before, but I am making this one. There will be no more deals. You will all come clean about any deals you’ve made and the devil you made it with, and you will also explain the price for the deal and whether or not it is already paid for.” I looked around the coven and was unsurprised to find that almost no one was meeting my gaze. I’d thought as much, but I was surprised that even Heather was looking away. Only Tara, the young witch, Hannah, who’d so recently lost both of her adopted parents, and Ally, the mousey witch, who no one much seemed to notice, looked back.
“The reason I want to know all of the details is because one of you attempted to hand me over to a pack of hellhounds, and one of you made a deal that indirectly resulted in the death of two witches in this coven. Anyone who has yet to carry out their side of the bargain will have their deals annulled.”
Natalia made a sound of disbelief. “Don’t be so naive. You can’t just take something like that back! Everyone knows a deal is final.”
I looked at her. “We’ll see about that,” was all I said for now. “Let’s start with some truth telling.”
Adelaide flicked her blonde hair back from her shoulders. “Fine. I’m not ashamed, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. I made a deal with Chloe Rex that Gareth Starbright will start taking me seriously in all respects and notice that I am indispensable to his life. In return, I delivered Hazel to her. I assumed it was to be eaten by hellhounds, but it looks like you’re fine. Everyone’s a winner!” Adelaide gave me her best fake smile.
I didn’t return it.
Heather was next to speak. “My deal was with Chloe. She came to my house for a psychic reading and offered me the chance to gain a clearer view of the future.” Heather paled when she said it. “She delivered. In return, I simply had to describe everything I saw. It seemed like a fair deal… but I wouldn’t do it again.” Heather raised her gaze to meet mine. “It didn’t hurt anyone,” she said, defensively.
“You don’t know that,” I replied, hating myself for sounding holier than thou, but that deal struck me as highly suspicious and clearly designed to benefit the devil who’d made it. I made a strong mental note to ask Heather what she’d seen in the unnatural glimpse her deal had a
fforded her. The playing field needed to be level.
“You know what mine was. I needed a lawyer to get me away from the bumbling local police force who couldn’t see that I’d been framed. I told them so many times!” Emma’s hands twisted in her lap as she showed an unusual level of emotion… but the way Emma had behaved had been unusual. “Anyway, she didn’t give me a price. It was just a favour to be called in whenever she needs it.”
“You signed for that?” I couldn’t believe anyone would be so foolish.
“I was in trouble!” Emma protested, before looking sick with nerves. I knew I was seeing the way she really felt about the deal.
“Okay, we’ll have to see what we can do,” I reassured her, but I couldn’t shake the knowledge that the witch currently pretending to be helpless had also tried to blackmail Jane into handing over her book shop… and had quite probably guessed the truth before I had - but hadn’t told anyone.
“I asked for my business to be the most successful spell business of all time,” Natalia said, not surprising me in the slightest.
Aurelia looked furiously at her sister. “I made the same deal!”
They stared at one another.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Only the Ghouls…
“What was the price you paid?” I reminded them.
“Oh, it was nothing major. I just said I’d do anything and everything the mayor wanted for his tourism drive. I’d have done it anyway out of community spirit, of course,” Natalia said.
“Mine was the same,” Aurelia agreed.
“Right.” I was wondering what, exactly, the mayor had asked for from his own deal. Quite a few of the deals I was hearing about seemed geared up to force people to do his bidding. When it came to Jane’s deal, I believed the intention was driving me out of business so that I’d be forced to do his bidding - even though I’d gone along with his suggestions so far. Chloe Rex was a nasty piece of work! I just had to figure out why she was doing so much to keep Gareth Starbright happy. Everyone else’s deals seemed to be simple for her.
“My deal was with Jesse. I asked to be the most popular Instagram influencer ever,” Victoria announced. “He said it would take a while, or people would suspect something is going on, but I’ve already added 100K followers since then! My posts just seem to be taking off, even though I’ve always tried to give them a little help…”
She meant she’d misused magic.
“…Anyway, he didn’t want much for it.” She frowned. “Actually, he laughed at me! Which was really rude. I clearly should have gone with his competitors. He wanted me to spy on the mayor and report back to him… get as close to him as I could, if possible. I asked Gareth out on a date and he said yes, so, I guess my job is done!”
Adelaide’s mouth dropped open. “How dare you?”
Victoria smoothed her shining brown hair. “Adelaide, darling, if he hasn’t asked you out yet, he’s never going to. You’ve worked together since forever!”
“Things are going to change!” Adelaide protested.
“Rebecca? What did you ask for?” I said, addressing one of the quieter members of the coven. She had kids who had always seemed like her whole world. I couldn’t imagine what she would have asked for, but I knew I was about to find out all the same.
“I…” She blushed beetroot. “I asked to be able to eat as much chocolate cake as I wanted without any of the calories. My deal was with Jesse,” she added, fiddling with her frizzy ginger hair. “I just wanted to be slim again… but still eat cake.”
There was a stunned silence.
“That’s a pretty good deal,” I heard someone say, but they shut their mouth before I could figure out who it had been.
I was fast losing the will to live. “What did Jesse ask for in return?”
“He wanted me to spy on the mayor. I don’t know how I’m going to do it. I don’t even know the mayor…” Rebecca looked genuinely worried.
I nodded. I was definitely sensing a theme.
“I didn’t make one,” Ally chirped up. “I thought about it, but… I don’t know. I just wasn’t sure, I suppose.”
I tried not to sigh. Those were hardly solid reasons for not making a pact with a devil.
“I watch films. I know it’s a bad idea,” Tara said, looking around her more senior peers with confusion on her young face.
“Same,” Hannah said. I was mostly impressed that she seemed to be holding up so well after the father figure she’d had such a good relationship with had just been arrested for murder. They’d only released Hannah because one of Helen’s colleagues had offered to look after her until other arrangements could be found. I thought the most likely explanation was that the truth just hadn’t yet sunk in. I hoped that those looking after her would be there for her when it did happen, and I also hoped she’d know she could always come to me.
I looked around the circle, but everyone had spoken. It was strange - I was always expecting one more, but we’d never replaced the hole made by the last witch in this coven who’d committed a terrible crime.
This coven really needed to update its image.
“I made a rule tonight, one that I believe is necessary, but I can’t make the next decision alone. A lot of you have made deals, but one of those deal makers made one that indirectly resulted in the deaths of two of the other witches in this coven. While Jane Spiney may never have intended Helen or Sarah to die, it still happened, and having anything to do with the death of another witch in your coven is one of our most serious crimes. I am asking you to judge her,” I said to the circle.
Jane cringed and looked hopefully around, but there were no answering gazes. Finally, the coven appeared to stand together on something.
“Everyone who believes that Jane should be excommunicated from the coven and leave Wormwood for the crime of being involved with the murders of two coven witches, raise your hands,” I said, my voice solemn. All around the circle, hands went up. “It is decided. Jane Spiney is hereby excommunicated from the Wormwood Coven. We’ll give you a few days to sort out your affairs, pack up your shop, and leave town,” I said, addressing the last part to the witch herself.
A single tear tracked its way down one of her cheeks, but I refused to be moved. She’d made a mistake, and even though it could have happened to anyone in the coven who’d made a deal, it was her deal that had resulted in death. I didn’t want to become a tyrannical leader, like the Witch Council, but there was such a thing as being too lenient.
“I’ll go now,” Jane said, getting to her feet in a daze and then heading for the door of the shop. She walked as though someone had dropped a weight on her back for her to carry at all times, and it was slowly starting to cripple her. I’d always admired the way Jane presented herself and her tough attitude, but all of that had been wiped away by one bad decision. That was all it took to ruin a life.
“So… we’re not really going to try to break our deals, are we?” Aurelia said the second Jane was gone. “That was all moral high ground stuff in front of the killer, right?”
I glared at her. “I meant what I said. Those deals are done with. No favours, no spying, and no sucking up!”
“In case you haven’t heard, these devils come with hellhounds attached,” Adelaide said, pulling a semi-amused face. She knew that from personal experience, having tried to feed me to them whilst she made her escape by broomstick.
“Yes, seeing them might be an advantage you have over us, if you really can see them, but all that means is you get to stare into their hideous faces before you’re ripped apart. I vote that Hazel is the one to go and ask for refunds on the deals, seeing as she’s so keen to fight a hellhound,” Aurelia said.
I happened to look across at Natalia and noticed her narrowing her eyes at me. I’d loved to have been able to credit her with having the intelligence to hear me out, but she was probably just plotting my downfall, or watching me plot my own.
“I’ll be happy to speak to both devils,” I said, putting my mone
y where my mouth was.
Half of the coven looked like they’d be interested in booking tickets to watch. The other half looked terrified. I glanced back towards the door, thinking it was too bad that Jane had already left. She’d have been able to share her own story with regard to the hellhound.
“No more deals from now on,” I repeated. “If anyone here makes a deal and I find out about it, you will be excommunicated.” I was already mentally planning my attack. I’d go after Jesse first. Hecate liked me, and all he seemed to be asking for was for people to spy on the man he was exceedingly paranoid about. I bet I could persuade him to tear up some of those official looking pieces of paper he kept on his desk.
If not, I’d set my hellhound on him.
I smiled a little at the idea. That might get Jesse to finally stop dodging my questions.
“If no one makes deals, the devils will probably leave town,” Heather spoke up. “They’ll have nothing to stay for. I’ve heard about it before. Sometimes people stop making deals and they leave… sometimes the town collapses when everyone in it is dead and the town itself a smoking hole in the ground. They also leave after that happens.”
“That sounds promising,” I muttered. I considered it properly and found myself considering Jesse, too. “Perhaps things will get back to normal around here if everyone stops making deals.”
The second after I said it, the shop door burst open and a gust of wind dramatically blew inside the shop. Lightning flashed in the sky and a woman materialised in the doorway. She wasn’t alone… but I was the only one who’d be able to see that.
